Top 10 Shakespeare Misquotes

16 Sep 2008

by: veronica

1. From “The Life and Death of King John”

Misquote: “Gild the lily”
Actual Quote: “To gild refined gold, to paint the lily”.

2. From: “Macbeth”

Misquote: “Lead on, Macduff”
Actual Quote: “Lay on, Macduff, and damned be him who first cries ‘Hold! enough!’”

3. From: “Macbeth”

Misquote: “Bubble bubble, toil and trouble.”
Actual Quote: “Double, double toil and trouble.”

4. From: “Hamlet”

Misquote: “Methinks the lady doth protest too much”
Actual Quote: “The lady doth protest too much, methinks.”

5. From: “Hamlet”

Misquote: “Alas, poor Yorick. I knew him well.”
Actual Quote: “Alas, poor Yorick. I knew him, Horatio - a fellow of infinite jest, of most excellent fancy.”

6. From: “Hamlet”

Misquote: “The rest is science”
Actual Quote: “The rest is silence”

7. From: “Romeo and Juliet”

Misquote: “A rose by any other name smells just as sweet.”
Actual Quote: “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other word would smell as sweet.”

8. From: “Richard III”

Misquote: “Now is the winter of our discontent.”
Actual Quote: “Now is the winter of our discontent / Made glorious summer by this sun of York.”

9. From: “Falstaff”

Misquote: “Discretion is the better part of valour.”
Actual Quote: “The better part of valour is discretion”

10. From: “Hamlet”

Misquote: “To the manor born”
Actual Quote: “but to my mind,—though I am native here and to the manner born,—it is a custom more honour’d in the breach than the observance.” (referring to drunken carousing).

Bonus. From: Romeo and Juliet

Quote: “Romeo, Romeo… Wherefore art thou Romeo?”

The problem is that most people think this line means “Romeo, Romeo… Where are you Romeo?” - in fact, “wherefore” in this context means “why”. The correct interpretation is “Romeo, Romeo… Why are you Romeo?” Juliet is asking Romeo why he is a Montague and, therefore, an enemy of her family.